The Flower Forest
by flamefield
Summary: Sakura stumbles one day upon the outcast Kakashi, who lives deep in the woods to avoid all who have scorned him. Based on 'Beauty and the Beast'.
1. Prologue

Prologue

Once upon a time, there was a young ninja who was the most skilled assassin in Konohagakure. Spoiled, self-absorbent, and handsome, Kakashi Hatake cared not for human life. Many people wished death upon him for killing their loved ones for no reason.

One day, Kakashi was sent on a mission to kill a small-ranking crime boss who resided in a small village. He succeeded, but in the process, killed many men, women, and children in the village because they were unfortunate enough to be in his way.

Now as he was passing through the main road, the bodies of the innocent piled on either side of him, a young girl stepped into his path, a small corpse in her arm.

"Why have you killed my little brother, ninja?" She asked, tears rolling down her cheeks.

Kakashi looked at her before he merely shrugged. He was not in the mood to kill anymore. He was about to walk around her when all of a sudden she dropped her brother on the ground and crossed her arms above her head.

"Kakashi Hatake." Her eyes began to glow a mesmerizing purple. "I cast this mark upon you - thus draining your chakra till you have no more." She pointed her arms at Kakashi and he suddenly felt a burning sensation on his chest. He ripped his jacket open to see a black symbol appear on the pale skin. "That mark will spread over your body until you are completely consumed by it, sending you to hell when it has reached your red eye."

Kakashi looked at the girl, frightened a little. "The mark will consume you in ten years - but fear not - should you learn the true value of human life before that time comes, the mark shall disappear."

The girl's eyes went back to normal and she collapsed onto the ground. "Remember this, ninja." She gasped before she slumped over her brother, dead.

Kakashi, though somewhat troubled, went back to Konohagakure. He soon realized, however, that he could not generate his chakra anymore-it was blocked. He also realized that the mark on his chest was spreading a little bit everyday.

Everywhere he went he was either laughed at or scorned. Finally, after a year, he disappeared. Some say he went to a new village to start anew. Some say he joined a circus to clean the latrines. But some believe that he lives in the mountains, waiting till his time comes in loneliness.


	2. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER ONE**

**10 years later**

Sakura was tending to the roses in front of the flower shop when her older sister, Ino, came running, out of breath.

"Sakura!" She said, smiling, clutching a large square package to her chest. "Guess who I just ran into?"

Sakura put down the pliers and looked up at the blonde ninja-in-training*. Just shy of turning 18, her unusual, long pink hair and ice-green eyes** easily made Sakura the prettiest girl in the village.

"Who, Ino?" She said a little impatiently. "You left me to deal with these poor guys-" She gestured to the wilting red flowers "-all by myself."

"I told you I was going to go for a walk around town." Ino said, still smiling. "Just guess!"

"Judging by your face, I'm guessing it was Sasuke." Sakura said, picking her pliers up again and going back to snipping away the dead parts.

Ino nodded excitedly. "He told me to give this to you." She thrust the package out to her younger sister.

Sakura eyed the package warily. Sasuke Uchiha. Konohagukare's top ninja-in-training. Not to mention the most handsome, with physical traits only the elite families carry. Any boy would love to be him. Any girl would love to be WITH him. Except for Sakura. She found him disgusting.

"He's a self-loving pig, Ino." She commented as she snipped another part away. "There is nothing interesting about him."

Ino scowled. "You are so selfish, Sakura. I would DIE to be in your position right now." She started to tear the wrapping off in anger. Sakura just ignored her until Ino was halfway through the wrapping.

"I'm sorry, Ino." She said, standing up and hugging her onii-chan. "I'm just in a bad mood today, that's all." Ino hesitated before hugging her sister back.

Sakura knew she had to be careful when it came to upsetting Ino. When Mother and Father didn't come home for weeks, months, years from their mission, it was Ino who took care of her and their family flower shop. When Sakura got old enough she began to help out to, because she owed it to her sister.

"Here." Sakura said kindly, taking the package from Ino. "I'll see what he got me." She tore off the rest of the packaging. Ino gasped at the sight - a beautiful blue necklace laid in a black velvet case. It was obviously quite expensive.

"I have no need for this." Sakura muttered to herself, but she saw Ino's anticipated face and chalked up her attitude to a 'surprised' reaction. She knew that Ino wanted her to have a good life, that's why she was so insistent on her liking Sasuke Uchiha.

"Can we actually go sketching now?" Sakura said quickly, putting the necklace away. "I wonder if there's something new in the meadow..."

"Sure." Ino smiled and skipped inside the shop. "I'll get yours as well!" She called back.

Sakura smiled back at her sister until she was out of sight, then she jammed the necklace quickly into the mud of the garden. She would need to have a talk with Sasuke soon and tell him to stay away. She had no intention of marrying anyone, or at least, this soon in her life.

She looked up at the flower shop. Ino was probably trying to find her sketchbook in the swamp she calls her room. At least Sakura kept hers clean. She looked at the dying roses. Maybe... she looked around quickly, making sure no one in the almost deserted street was looking. Then she slowly knelt down and placed her palm over one of the roses, wary of her surroundings, and concentrated. When she took her hand away, the rose was healed, and now standing up strong and proud.

She stood up quickly when Ino came out again with the sketchbooks and brushes. "I've got them." She said cheerfully. She stopped when she saw the bright red rose. "Oh!" She exclaimed. "I didn't notice that we still had a live one left."

"No, we do." Sakura said quickly. Ino looked at her curiously before Sakura grabbed her brush and sketchbook out of Ino's hands. "Let's go before it becomes too late."

Ino looked at the healthy flower before following her little sister. ***

**IN THE MEADOW**

"Hey, Ino! I found that orange one you were drawing yesterday!" Sakura hollered over the wind to Ino, who was searching the grass nearby.

"Thanks, Sakura!" Ino said as she came closer. "Wait -" She looked closer. "This isn't it."

Sakura sighed. "Are you sure it was in this area?" She hated it when Ino got hooked on drawing one specific flower. She had to keep drawing it and it had to be the same exact one.

"I'm sure..." Ino looked to the left, where the forest was. "Maybe it was nearby there?"

Sakura looked at where she was talking about. The darkened trees curled upon each other, and no sunlight hit that place. "In there?" She said, a little fearful.

"Not all the way - just come with me." Ino said. "Let's go." She grasped Sakura's hand and headed towards the forest.

"Ino, I really don't think you sketched an orange flower in here." Sakura said, stepping over a bubbling pit of black goo.

"Just let me think." Ino said as they continued walking through the forest-swamp. Some time passed before Sakura finally dug her shoes into the ground. "Let's go home, Ino." She said. "It's obviously not here." She looked at her sister.

Ino was staring, mouth open, at something. Sakura followed her gaze. Right there, in what seemed like the middle of nowhere, there was a colorful flower garden. Both she and Ino began walking slowly towards it until they were in a midst of color.

"It's beautiful." Ino said. Sakura nodded in agreement, astonished. She heard a rustling and looked behind her, but there was nothing. "Hey, Ino." Sakura said, coming to her senses. "Maybe we should go now. It's probably going to get dark soon-"

"Look!" Ino said, interrupting Sakura and pointing to a crystal-like flower in the middle of the garden.

"Let's go Ino." Sakura said, hearing the rustling again. Ino walked to the flower and reached out a finger to touch it. All of a sudden something big and black swooped down out of nowhere, gathering up Ino in its arms. Sakura gasped and stumbled back. The figure took out a kunai, holding it up to Ino's throat.

"You are trespassers." It said in a low voice, sneering.

**Ino is in-training, Sakura is not**

**** Some people say her eyes are blue, but I think they're green**

***** This is not explained later really, but healing is forbidden in Konohagukare if you are not licensed by the council **

**Rate, Review, Comment!**


	3. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER TWO**

"Please don't hurt her!" Sakura pleaded with the masked man. His silver hair glinted in the shaded sunlight but his dark eyes were unreadable.

"Why shouldn't I? She tried to steal one of my most precious flowers." The man held the kunai closer to Ino's throat, drawing a little bit of blood. "Don't even think about getting closer." He warned the pink-haired girl.

Sakura froze. Her attempt to startle the man had failed. "What do you want!?" She shouted, scared for her sister. Ino's eyes widened as she felt the weapon press even closer into her neck. She started hypervenilating.

The man thought for a few moments. Sakura saw his eyes scanning her mud-encrusted body. "For you to be my guest* in my home, forever." He said finally.

"NO SAKURA DON'T DO IT!" Ino shouted before Sakura held up a hand to silence her.

"I accept, you criminal." She said, her green eyes blazing in fury. She would not let her sister be murdered by a common criminal. She could always escape. "Let her go! Now!"

The man released the blonde girl, who collapsed onto the ground, panting. "Naruto. Neji." He snapped his fingers. Immediatly Sakura felt fingers pressing into her body and then there was no feeling at all. She fell into the arms of another man. She looked up and was startled to see that his eyes were pure white with gray marks **.

A blonde-haired ninja who seemed to come out of nowhere did the same thing to Ino, and he gathered her up and leapt off into the forest.

"She will be spared." The silver-haired man said, kneeling down next to Sakura. "But you will never see her again. You will forever stay in my house, where I assure you, you will be comfortable."

The last thing Sakura saw before the man who was holding her pressed more spots in her neck was the man's sad eyes.

Sakura woke to the sound of birds chirping. She found herself on a patterned bed in a small, but neatly furnished room. She sat up, rubbing the sore spots where the ninja had poked her.*** "_How long has it been since I was knocked out?"_ She thought to herself, wrapping her arms around her legs. She stiffened when she realized that she was probably never going to see Ino again, or their flower shop. Sakura began to cry in despair.

"Hey, now, don't do that."

Sakura lifted her head to see the two ninjas that had assaulted her and Ino. The blonde-haired one was smiling goofily while the strange-eyed one was just staring at her with no expression on his clear face.

"Don't cry." The blonde-haired man said. "Please don't be sad."

Sakura sniffed. "I have every reason to be. I'm a prisoner here for the rest of my life."

"You don't have to look at it like that. I'm Naruto and this is Neji." Neji nodded in response at Sakura. "Come have something to eat, it will make you feel better."

The pink-haired girl shook her head. "I'm not hungry." She whimpered, laying down on her side. "I just want to be alone."

Naruto and Neji looked at each other. "Very well." Naruto said, bowing and walking out the door. Neji followed him, shutting the door.

Sakura cried until she fell asleep again.

"Kakashi...are you sure this is a good idea? She said she feels like a prisoner-"

"Listen, she's my last chance at saving my life. If she isn't the one to do that, then I'll let her go." The silver-haired ninja rubbed his eyes. "She's different. She's aware. She's focused."

"But-"

"Enough, Naruto." Kakashi stood up from the desk in which he was sitting at. "Go get supplies from the village."

Naruto shut his mouth, nodded, and walked away. Kakashi sighed, wincing as he pulled his shirt up. The mark that the girl had cursed him with had spread all around his stomach, nether-regions, and legs. The black swirls mocked him as well as causing him constant pain.

"Damn." Kakashi muttered, letting his shirt settle on his body again.

***lol, beauty and the best**

****Don't know how to describe his eyes exactly**

*****pretty sure he didn't poke her...**

**So you guys are probably thinking 'OH, flame, this is just like Blood Basket'. Well it's NOT! The story is a lot different, even though the opening is kind of the same. I hope you enjoyed it and rest assured the next chapter will be written soon! :)**

**Rate, Review, Comment!**


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